Sami was genuinely surprised by their reaction to his age, which seemed very strange. What did the old woman mean by 'four nights'? And why had she asked him his age in the first place? And why had he answered? Many questions swirled in his head.
The old woman moved her lips in displeasure, looked towards Senn, and said in an almost composed tone:
"Where did you bring this lunatic from? If he's telling the truth, that will be a big problem."
Senn shifted her eyes to the side, avoiding Sami's gaze, and said in a cold tone:
"Well... unfortunately, he is telling the truth. And yes, I knew that, but Lam insisted we bring him with us."
The old woman moved her eyes restlessly, then looked towards Lam, who gave her an unreadable look but didn't say a word. It seemed the two of them had already conducted a successful silent conversation, then turned their gazes back to Sami.
Sami was analyzing everything rapidly. It seemed he had fallen into the ordeal's trap without realizing it. Many thoughts crossed his mind; why had they brought him here if it would cause trouble? Who was this old woman? Why did she seem in control? Why was everything about this city strange?
But amidst his thoughts, he noticed their gazes fixed on him and didn't know what to do. He sighed in confusion, then hesitantly asked a question:
"Can... anyone tell me... what's happening here? Because I'm really conf..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he saw a reflection in Lam's and the old woman's eyes. He searched with his eyes for Senn, but she wasn't in his line of sight.
Oh, damn... is the sword coming out of my stomach now Senn's? The one she never used before?
Sami thought numbly to himself. This was the first time he'd been stabbed, and it wasn't a pleasant feeling at all. He coughed, spitting out a lot of blood from his mouth, then tried to move his hand towards the sword, but he didn't find it. It seemed he hadn't noticed, but both his own sword and the daggers he had acquired from the corpses were sitting quietly behind the old lady.
Sami's eyes narrowed in pain. He moved his blood-covered lips slowly, feeling something spreading in his body from the stab wound. He slowly turned his eyes and rotated his head, seeing Senn standing behind him with the same strange expression as before. But now he understood it better.
Her iron sword was piercing through his back in a curved shape, descending from between his shoulder blades and exiting just below his navel. It seemed she had truly aimed to kill him, and worst of all, the sword was poisoned for some reason. The poison began to take effect, increasing Sami's suffering, and his mind started to become foggy.
Sami forced his lips to move, opened his mouth determinedly, then gritted his teeth, saying:
"Damn... it seems I was really stupid... damn it... what a bad situation, right?"
Sami closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He wasn't the type to die quietly. If death was the only path, at the very least he had the resolve to take a companion with him on this desolate journey.
He reached behind him, grabbed the hilt of the worn-out sword, and pulled it forcefully from his guts.
Sami let out an agonized scream as blood gushed from his wound. He raised the sword, channeling the last of his energy into his legs. He was preparing for a final strike.
He lunged forward as azure fluid stained the stone floor. The old woman and Lam didn't move because everything happened in almost a single second, but it felt like an eternity to Sami due to the pain.
He surged powerfully towards Senn, raised his sword high, brought it back, and just before he could unleash it forward to deliver the strike he had trained for years to perfect... Sami collapsed to the ground.
The sword fell from his hands, and his limp body hit the ground in complete silence. The only things moving in that room were the blood flowing from the corpse like a waterfall, and the emotionless glances Senn occasionally directed towards it.
Lam sighed, then transformed his expression into a wide, broad smile completely contrary to his personality. He approached Senn, stepping over Sami's corpse as if it simply wasn't there. He placed his hand on her shoulder and said:
"You did well... And luckily I poisoned your sword, otherwise we might have lost you. A truly good decision."
He looked towards the old woman, who gave him an angry look... but he averted his gaze from her towards Sami's corpse. He looked at it with utter contempt, as if seeing the most vile and hated thing in the world, then spat to the side.
He looked at Senn and said in a commanding tone:
"Take the corpse and throw it into the Viper's Well. Make sure he's dead... We don't know the full extent of a Knight of the Moon's capabilities."
---
Lunar City was hollow, devoid of any life. The bright sunbeam fell upon it mercilessly, casting long, silent shadows on its weathered walls. There was no one to watch, or to hear, what was happening in its cold heart.
And so, in complete silence, Sami's corpse was thrown by a girl with orange hair and sorrowful eyes into a black well, contrasting with the surroundings illuminated by the hellish sunlight. The corpse tumbled over the edge of the well and fell into the darkness, devoid of any will.
The girl cast one last look at the well, a sorrowful expression on her face, then turned her back to it and continued on her way.
"And thus... the first ordeal truly began!"
To be continued...
---